The Return to Oz
by Ende
Summary: Think Wizard of Oz, only a bit more twisted. The rating will likely go up as the story goes on. Enjoy.


The Return to Oz  
  
Prologue: A Black and White Movie  
  
Somewhere among the state lines of Kansas, there was a small, rickety old house. Now, although this house was old and a bit rickety, the people that lived inside it were as nice as they come. An elderly woman, who often went by the name Emma around her friends, kept up the small garden that her and her husband had planted in their backyard. She also did most of the house-cleaning and cooking. It wasn't so much that her husband forced her to do this work, but she rather liked doing it. Some would call her a fool for it, but she disregarded this altogether. She realized that people could have their own opinions about her and she respected that, but she didn't feel it was in her duty to go along with them.   
  
The second person that lived in that rather small house was Emma's husband. He was a simple, not very well-to-do farmer, but he tried his best. He felt that if you didn't work, then you were quite useless. He loved his wife dearly, and she returned his love with a great dose of her own. He brought in enough money to support the family; not that their family was much bigger than two. No, there was only one other person that lived in that house besides them. That person was their nephew, Duo.  
  
Duo was somewhere around seventeen years old, and he had a mind of his own. Not only did he have a mind of his own, but he made damn sure that everyone knew about it. It's not as if Duo misbehaved or disrespected his aunt and uncle, he just treated people he met the way that they treated him. Normally speaking, there were no conflicts. Unless, of course, someone tried to mess with him or his family, then he would have to act; however, this rarely would've happened.   
  
There was another being that resided in that old, Kansas house: but it just wasn't a person. This being was a small, black dog named Toto. Toto was actually Duo's dog, and he had a habit of following Duo around everywhere the boy went.  
  
Although not much happened on the farm, there were some days where things went out of hand. There is one day in particular that seemingly changed Duo's life forever.  
  
It was like any other normal day. A dusty, humid wind blew faintly across the town in which Duo resided. Although all the citizens of that town would claim different about the trees, that they always looked like that, the trees seemed to wither down to the ground. Every so often a black bird, probably a crow or a raven, would fly over top of the house.  
  
Emma was out in the garden, digging up some weeds that had managed to root their way into the soil and grow. Duo's uncle was out in the fields doing what not. A few farm hands, some of them Emma's sons, worked in the barn feeding the cattle and horses. Toto was running around the yard, chasing a fly. Amidst all of the fun, however, Duo sulked sitting beside a tree, watching Toto run around.  
  
"This is all like some black and white movie," he grumbled, flicking an ant away that was moving a bit too close to him.  
  
Toto stopped for a moment, cocked his head at Duo, then returned to his chase.  
  
Duo sighed, glaring that the sun that beat down on him and the rest of the town. If only there was something that he could beside sit around all day. He had already finished the chores that Aunt Em had asked him to do. He didn't really feel up to helping his uncle with any field work, and he sure didn't want to shovel manure out of a horse's stall.  
  
Before Duo had the chance to ponder on what activities he could so any further, he noticed Emma walking up to him, a basket in her hand. He stood up and met her halfway.  
  
"What's up, Aunt Em?"   
  
Emma smiled brightly, handing the basket to Duo.  
  
"I was wondering if you'd mind taking this over to Ms. Finch's house. She been a bit ill lately, and I figured that I'd bake her something."  
  
Duo nodded his head. "Sure, I don't mind going."  
  
"Thanks, dear."  
  
Emma smiled one last time and walked back to the house.  
  
Duo sighed.  
  
  
  
"Well, least I have something to do now, eh, Toto?"  
  
Toto barked a bit, and began to follow Duo as the boy started to walk.  
  
Besides the heat and dust from the road, the walk itself was more on the pleasant side than anything. Duo walked a bit slowly, seeing as once he had to go back home, his uncle would ask him to do manual labor. He didn't mind doing it every so often, but it was a bit on the warm side that day.  
  
The lady's house that Duo and Toto were traveling to was Emma's best friend, Ms. Finch. Ms. Finch was nearly seventy years old, and her health wasn't at it's high point. Duo found that he regularly had to go and give her get-well gifts--normally food--from Emma. He didn't really mind, however, for Ms.Finch was nice enough. She was kind of quiet, but Duo just concluded that she had a lot of stuff on her mind. Seventy years of living would cause anyone's mind to be full of thought all day.  
  
As the sun beat down, the two came upon the driveway that would take them down to Ms. Finch's house. It was more like the length of a road than a driveway, seeing as it was almost half a mile. Halfway down the dusty driveway, Duo stopped suddenly.   
  
A small trailer that had never been there before was parked between two trees. Suspicious and curious, Duo went over and knocked on the door. The door almost instantly swung open.   
  
A pretty girl with short, dark hair smiled at him. She couldn't have been more than twenty.  
  
"Can I help you with somethin'?" She asked cheerfully.  
  
"Well, I was just wondering who was here. I come down here at least once a week, and I've never seen you or the trailer before."  
  
"Oh, well I'm kinda new here."  
  
"Not that I'm trying to be nosy or anything, but isn't this someone else's property?"  
  
"'S no problem at all. It's my ex-boyfriend's, grandmother's property. I just needed a little place to stay is all. She said I was welcome to park here."  
  
"Ms. Finch has a son?"  
  
The girl nodded. "Yea, but he moved east. The Kansas air was a bit much for him," she added, winking.  
  
Duo chuckled a bit. "Well, I should get going. I have to take some stuff from my aunt to Ms. Finch."  
  
"It was great meeting you," the girl said as Duo walked away. "See you soon!"  
  
Duo would've asked how she knew how soon they'd meet again, but he didn't think it was necessary. The girl had gone back into her trailer before he had even had the chance to ask.  
  
§ § § §  
  
After Duo had given Ms. Finch Emma's basket, he began to walk home. As he did so, an eerie feeling began to fill him. The air was just a bit too calm. The soft breeze that gently blew through the trees was just a bit too calm. The air held a feeling of doom, and when Duo felt something like that, something dreadful normally occurred. He has always thought that one should follow their instincts, and his instincts told him that something bas was going to happen.  
  
When Duo approached his house, he ran toward it. The pickup of wind and the soft rainfall that was gradually growing harder could only indicate one thing: a tornado. He had to make sure that Aunt Em and his uncle were safe.   
  
When he got to the house, the wind had picked up so much that it almost knocked Duo over. The suspicion of a tornado were confirmed when Duo saw the funnel looming toward him. As he ran toward the door, he threw it open and ran in. He desperately looked for his aunt and uncle, yet they were nowhere in the house. They had to of already gone into the underground shelter that had been built just for tornado occurrences.   
  
As Duo turned to pick Toto up and run outside, a strong gust of wind knocked him into the door of the tiny basement. The door sprang open, and Duo tumbled down each stair, falling into darkness. 


End file.
